My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Bark Veneer Cardboard Cake stands

There are endless ways to make and decorate cardboard cake stands. I made two bark covered cake-stands, one with a dried hydrangea top and one with Papier Mache for my demonstration

Cut a cardboard circle and choose a base for the cake stand

Cut a cardboard circle and choose a base for the cake stand. You can use an upturned plant pot, cardboard tubes even covered cans.

Glue the cardboard to the base

Glue the cardboard to the base

Glue an edge around the circle.

Cut a strip of cardboard and glue it around the circle to create an edge.

Glue the top of the strip to create a flat surface

Glue the top of the strip to create a flat surface

Connect the ends and glue it flat

Connect the ends and glue it flat

Cake stand ready to cover

Cake stand ready to cover. You can cover the cardboard with fabric, Papier Mache, ribbon or simply paint it.

To cover the cake stand with bark:

Glue chips of bark to the edge

Glue chips of bark to the edge

Continue all the way around

Continue all the way around following the wood grain...

To cover the entire edge

...to cover the entire edge

To cover the top:

Rip up tissue paper and glue it to the surface

The easiest way is to rip up tissue paper and stick it to the surface with wood glue

When the glue is dry you will have a strong and durable top

When the glue is dry you will have a strong and durable top

Or:

Glue dried flowers to the top

Glue dried flowers (such as hydrangeas) or moss to the top

Paint the flowers with a layer of glue before adding more flowers.

Paint the flowers with a layer of glue before adding more flowers.

The wood glue protects the flowers from becoming brittle

The wood glue protects the flowers from becoming brittle

Hydrangea flower top.

Hydrangea flower top.

Add a neat ribbon

Add a neat ribbon...

Or let the ribbon tails dangle long

...or let the ribbon tails dangle long

Every week I add a new design with related tutorials. Be sure to subscribe to receive an email notification with design inspiration.

Tutorials

2 June 2011 Papier Mache

I save all the thin tissue paper or un-printed newsprint papers that are wrapped around the flowers that are delivered to me to make batches of Papier Mache with. These sheets...

30 May 2012 Drying Hydrangeas: Fast, Flat or Natural

Use all three methods to dry hydrangeas to get three very different textures to use in design work.

Related Designs

18 December 2009 Cardboard Cup Cake Tower

White and lime green cake stand for chocolate muffins

22 January 2013 It's High Time for Tea: from craft to art, taking a delicious floral journey with veneer techniques

This was my second two designs for my It's High Time for Tea Floral Craft and Art Demonstration at The Capilano Flower Arranging Club meeting.

14 January 2013 It is High Time for Tea. Floral Craft and Art demonstration at the The Capilano Flower Arranging Club meeting

This is an overview of the Floral Art and Craft Demonstration at The Capilano Flower Arranging Club. I demonstrated three floral craft cake designs and three matching floral art...

11 January 2017 As special as an almost never find

Sometimes you find such a beautiful plant that you just can't bring yourself to cut it. This design explores using the entire plant, pot and all, in a design

25 November 2020 Have yourself a Merry Cellulose Fibre Christmas: Santa’s gift bag wreath

...ok not really that fancy- it’s made from paper pulp. A cardboard box gift bag wreath… really. In the spirit of 2020- I am inspired by the endless stream of cardboard boxes...

10 November 2021 … any day now

Using dried floral material is so trendy right now. But the longer lasting the design elements the more effort you have to put in to stop it from looking lifeless.

11 October 2023 Plenty Glow to Harvest

Glow and sparkle bark armature to celebrate the first signs of Autumn